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Comment: Very Good used copy: Some light wear to cover, spine and page edges. Very minimal writing or notations in margins. Text is clean and legible. Possible clean ex-library copy with their stickers and or stamps.

Cardboard: A woman left for dead is recognized as one of the most compelling portraits of an eating disorder and an outstanding example of its genre. It is also winner of the National Book Council's Award for New Writers. When we first meet Lucy she cannot understand what is wrong with her. Ashen, thin and with a thready heartbeat, she is finding it increasingly difficult to eat. The tour leader, on a tight schedule, decides she is merely homesick. And lying on her bed she is left to fend for herself. Alone in her tiny hotel room, Lucy wonders what she should do? Is she really sick or just homesick? Reluctantly, she decides to fly to an English speaking country. And to her embarrassment is taken off the plane in a wheelchair. Admitted to intensive care, Lucy is now a 'patient'. And undergoing a range of advised treatments - some harsh and ineffective, others intelligent and insightful - unknowingly enters into a dynamic and powerful struggle over the ownership of her identity, her life story. An astute observer, Lucy invites the reader to make sense of what it means to be 'ill'. To understand why eating has become so impossible. Life so impossible. And as she fleshes out her journey towards a secure, full-bodied and robust recovery demands her distress be understood. Demands it be put into her own words. Her own voice. Exquisitely written and winningly readable this novel will reach out to everyone who has struggled with the big questions: Who am? What do I want? How dangerous are my desires? "A psychological and intellectual tour de force" Liz Ferrier, Advisory Editor, m/c - a journal of media and culture "The complexity of the character Lucy's world is a tour de force of tight thinking and probing insights into the complexity of human behavior . . . she reminds me of Rodion Raskolnikov in Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment." Michael Bailey, reviewer "One of the best novels ever to be published in Australia" Amanda Lohrey, novelist

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About the Author

Fiona Place has always been interested in women, language and identity. Her short stories, poetry and essays appear in various literary journals and anthologies. She has worked as a financial commentator for various fund managers and major newspapers. Her focus on making investment and economic concepts accessible to the general reader. Today she combines motherhood with her work as a writer and an advocate for children with intellectual disabilities. Her essays on motherhood and genetics appear in peer-reviewed journals and other publications.

More About the Author

Fiona Place has always been interested in women, language and identity. Her novel Cardboard was originally published by Local Consumption Publications and won the National Book Council Award for New Writers. Her second, the co-authored self-help book When Eating is Everything was published in 1991.

Fiona has worked as a financial commentator for various fund managers and major newspapers. Her focus on making investment and economic concepts accessible to the general reader.

Today she combines motherhood with her work as a writer and an advocate for children with intellectual disabilities. Her essays on motherhood and genetics appear in peer-reviewed journals.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

When I first received this book and realised it was part prose part poetry I was a bit worried. Not because I don't enjoy poetry, I do, but because I wondered how it could be possible that a story could flow well while jumping between the two styles. I discovered very quickly however that this is not a problem - the prose has a very poetic form and the poetry fits in very well, exploring the paragraphs with greater emotional depth. I had several moments whilst reading the poetry that I was in awe of Fiona Place's ability to capture the subtle nuances of the emotional experience with words.

If I could explain this book in one word it would be experiential. The story begins with the protagonist in a desperately fragmented state, close to death from her eating disorder and her mind shattered. As the book continues and the reader follows her journey towards healing, the prose and poetry change in structure to reflect this. Ms Place has managed to capture the inner experience of a person suffering from an eating disorder and her journey through different styles of therapy that seem to either trap in her disorder or help her to find her way through towards health and well being. The way the book is written made me feel that I was following the protagonist so closely and experiencing her revelations at the same time she was. This is not an easy read, it is intellectually challenging and also challenges the reader to go within and experience the emotional journey from fragmentation to healing. This is a fascinating story, and lovers of poetry and language will enjoy this story immensely.

I have given this book 4 stars and not 5, because of the way my rating system works. My rating system is based on my enjoyment of a book.Read more ›

It's been a long time since I've read a book that really put me into a life I've never known, into the shoes of someone whose path I've never traveled, and into a mind that I could both relate to and not understand at all. That's what Cardboard did for me. The book is written in what feels like stream of consciousness narrative from a woman who struggles with anorexia, which leads to other pyschological and social disorders (e.g., afraid of employment, afraid of relationships with men). Parts of the narrative are written in paragraph form and other pieces are written in short chunks of what really feels like a random thought in the woman's mind. The different types of narrative mixed together perfectly matched what I imagined the main character's mind to be like. I love modern literature, and this fascinated me.

This is also one of those books that is both hard to read and hard to put down. I kept getting caught up in Lucy's almost recovery and then heartbroken as she continued to falter on that path. Even though it was fiction, the story felt very real, like it was written about someone in particular or from the author's own personal experiences. And even though I personally don't have an eating disorder or suffer from any other pyschological disorders (that I know of), I could relate to Lucy's desire for control and her nervousness and fear when she sensed a loss of control. I probably wouldn't pick this book up to read again but I'm glad I read it in the first place because it was eye-opening, insightful, and definitely worth reading. 5 stars

Cardboard took me to places in Lucy's inner life that at times I knew very well and at times I had not even the remotest of clues. Fiona's writing drew me into the story straightaway and I saw the movie on the first page! (I'm an extremely demanding fiction reader.) And best of all, I thank Lucy for sharing her poetry with us.

I had the pleasure of reading the Australian edition of Cardboard several years ago and it has since been one of my favorite novels. The writing is exquisite. Do not be put off by imagining a tale of eating disorder. There is far more to this than that.The complexity of the character Lucy's world is a tour de force of tight thinking and probing insights into the complexity of human behavior. Frankly she reminds me of Rodion Raskolnikov, the memorable criminal in Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.Dostoevsky's character behaves in ways that are shocking and aberrant and would be so to the point of dreary caricature were it not for the descriptions of drink induced delirium, gossip and societal dysfunction which so famously add depth, realism and indeed a sense of attraction to the murdering Roskolnikov.Fiona Place's technique is not so dissimilar but she uses her poetry to build Lucy's depth of character. Much of Lucy's behavior is, like Roskolnikov's, so clearly self destructive and frustrating to a reader that great skill is required to render her believable, compelling and even sympathetic. To mix prose with poetry requires great talent in both genres and here Ms. Place's writing is at its' most powerful. For readers who love great writing this book is a pure pleasure. The story is a good one. And it is told in a way to make the reader stop and consider the true depth of human psyche, the nature of motivation, alternative realities and the strength people can be capable of in confronting some significant demons.Fiona Place is a fine poet, writer, story teller and thinker and Cardboard deserves to be read and enjoyed by everyone.